On the night of June 19-20, hackers compromised Brazil's national emergency alert system and sent out fake messages to residents of at least seven cities. Some of the messages warned of an imminent alien attack.
On the night of June 19-20, hackers compromised Brazil's national emergency alert system and sent out fake messages to residents of at least seven cities. Some of the messages warned of an imminent alien attack.
Hackers triggered the official emergency alert sound on mobile phones across the country, causing panic and confusion. The system was eventually shut down at 1:30 a.m. on Saturday, Dexerto reports .
According to the G1 Globo publication, residents of the city of Belo Horizonte received a message that read: "Protect yourself: ALIEN ATTACK, PEOPLE, WE HAVE ARRIVED."
In Rio de Janeiro, the text was less disturbing, but just as strange. The message contained typos and Brazilian slang: “misantropo ADRESS RJ burros dms pprt” (which translates to “misanthrope ADDRESS RIO and stupid, really”).
Many fraudulent notifications used the word "misanthropy" — meaning contempt or hatred for people. It had no connection to any real danger to citizens.
Social media instantly exploded with memes. Confused Brazilians quickly turned the nighttime commotion into a joke, and the story of an “alien attack” spread across the internet.
Brazil's National Civil Protection Agency confirmed that the messages were sent by unauthorized individuals and referred the case to the Federal Police for investigation. No suspects have been identified at this time.
